Alec Baldwin – at Tanglewood this weekend – talks Boston

Arts

The part-time Vermont resident — and full-time classical music fan — narrates for the Boston Symphony Orchestra on Sunday.

“I won the Amory Blaine Medal Scholarship to Princeton, then went to Harvard Business School, where I was voted ‘Most’.”

“Lemon, I’m not in the mood to solve your lady’s problems or listen to a story about whatever escapee from Misfit Toys Island you’re currently dating.”

“I have to talk to Rachel Maddow. Only one of us can get this haircut.”

No one delivers a line like Alec Baldwin as Boston’s Jack Donaghy. nbc “30 Rock” It is comfort food. You find new favorite lines with every rewatch. Years later Its conclusion, that Nourishes the Internet and Twitter feeds Her best inspiration.

Now Baldwin – a master of line delivery – narrates at Tanglewood.

When Baldwin arrived, he was in a car heading from his home in Manhattan to Brooklyn to stock the wardrobe for “Roman.“

He says the upcoming Netflix series set in the casino will become “my full focus once we start” filming, describing part of the show.

But first, the classical music lover and “frustrated bandleader” will get his Tanglewood fix.

A part-time New Englander — he and his Boston-born wife, Hilaria Baldwin, have a home in Arlington, Vermont — Baldwin regularly attended Tanglewood shows as a fan, he says, driving from New York. Now that the Baldwins have seven young children, trips to Lenox have become less frequent.

“I haven’t been around much lately because of all my kids, but when I’m a little more available, I’ll go Canyon Ranch And Tanglewood and have a great weekend,” Baldwin says.

This year, however, Baldwin will participate in Tanglewood’s Independence Day weekend program. His recent legal troubles Behind himwould be an Academy Award nominee and Emmy Award winner (“30 Rock”). a novel Boston Symphony Orchestra performance “Portrait of Lincoln” by Aaron Copland, July 5.

For starters, the New York Philharmonic Orchestra commissioned composers during World War II to create “musical portraits” of notable Americans. Copeland selected Lincoln and included excerpts from letters, speeches, and popular songs. “Lincoln Portrait” premiered in 1942, with Copeland conducting the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and narrating radio personality William Adams.

Baldwin, 68, made his debut at Tanglewood in 2010 narrating “The Dream Lives On: A Portrait of the Kennedy Brothers” with Boston Pops and Keith Lockhart.

The actor clearly has a narrative voice – he narrated Wes Anderson’s “The Royal Tenenbaums” among many other projects.

We talked about Tanglewood, “30 Rock,” Boston accents, “Outside Providence,” Sox games, and more.

boston.com: Wondering what draws you to “Portrait of Lincoln”? I just did it Pasadenaalso.

Alec Baldwin: I am grateful to be invited to anything classical music related. I don’t play any musical instruments. I am a frustrated leader. I wish I had studied music and become a band leader. I’ll do that tomorrow instead of what I do for a living.

Not there [much narration work] In the classic op. [I’ve done] “Peter and the Wolf”, “The Soldier’s Tale”. I started working with Phil in New York, probably 17 years ago – and I’m on the symphony’s board of directors. I am the announcer on their programs recorded on WQXR, New York Philharmonic Orchestra this week.

I’m the batsman for the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. I’m not playing the game, but I’m there on the sidelines.

[laughs] right.

I believe this year marks 40 years of my ongoing obsession with classical music.

What got you into it?

The music on the radio didn’t speak to me anymore. I was approaching the corner towards thirty. Popular music was kind of vulgar. I came from the Beatles, Zeppelin, Stones, The Who – stuff from the 70s when I was a kid. this [’80s] Music, I didn’t really care for it. I turned on KCRW in Los Angeles and the first piece I heard was Mahler’s Ninth with Solti and Chicago, and I never looked back. I just love it.

You have New England connections too. You have a house in Vermont.

My wife stayed with her grandfather for a few years [David Lloyd Thomas, Sr.] In the Arlington area. We would have liked to go further – because I think the further you go, the nicer it is – but with seven kids, the trip is long enough for four hours.

I bet. Your wife also grew up partly in Boston.

She’s from Boston. She was born and raised in Boston, but moved back and forth between Boston and Spain throughout her 12 years of schooling. Her parents didn’t just want her to grow up in the United States, so she and her brother stayed there for six months for 12 years. She is on her way to Spain soon with my kids to see her parents.

Nice – good. And speaking of Boston, you speak with a strong Boston accent – ​​not many non-natives can do that. Is there a trick for that?

Well, when you’re around people from Boston, they’re very fond of destruction for you Boston accent. A lot of Bostonians I know — especially actors — say, “You know, your voice in that movie was terrible. You don’t sound like you’re from Boston.”

[laughs] I can see that.

After I did “The Departed” – Mark Wahlberg and [Matt] Damon was like, “Eh, close. You’re getting closer.”

[laughs] Are you studying with someone?

We have dialect coaches. Brooks Baldwin, I worked with him here in New York. Tim Munich, he’s great. Jessica Drake is great. You realize that you always fall short. They say: “Remember, you have to hit Which word Which Way.” Having the person give you that feedback, that’s very helpful.

And it takes time. You had to walk around speaking in that accent. So, if I’m doing a play, and it’s in an English accent, I’m on the phone [breaks into posh English accent] “Would you like to have a lunch? Oh really? no? You don’t want it to be lunch? You don’t have it time? Well, I am He apologizes.And your friend says, “Will you shut up? What do you do?”

[laughs] right. The Rhode Island accent is very close to Boston. You’ve succeeded “Outside Providence.”

Oh, my God.

I love this movie. I’m thinking of the line, “Did you hit paahked caahhp cah?”

Oh my God, that movie was so funny. These guys [RI’s Farrelly Brothers] She was very funny. We had so much fun. The other actors were a lot of fun. If you do even a remote Rhode Island Special Accident, that is a miracle from God.

[laughs]

I don’t know how to tell Boston from Rhode Island at all.

They are barely Same thing, which is why I think you did it so well. I played it near Boston. Many actors don’t realize how similar they are.

Are you from Rhode Island?

Yes.

Oh, I love Rhode Island. I loved photographing there. “We were there to shoot.”The last shot“—The original name was, I think, ‘Providence.’ Jeff Nathanson, Toni Collette, and Matthew Broderick directed me in this very dry and funny film.

Everyone said, “Oh, you have to go to.” Caserta For pizza. So I go, and a man goes, [breaks into Rhode Island accent] “So, Alec. Are you making a movie?” I go, “Yes.” “And you’re staying at a hotel blah blah blah?” I go, “Yes.” [laughs] News spreads quickly. This man knew more about my accommodations than I did. Which room am I in?

[laughs] This is very Rhode Island. So I want to ask about “30 Rock.” It almost seems more common now – there are times when my Twitter feed does it justice everyone 30 rock lines. I rewatched endlessly and always picked up new lines. Do you have any favorite quotes?

I have many, but just to pick one [pause] …You know, we would do reads for the producers, the heads of all the departments, on camera — and they would send it to the executives in Los Angeles. Every Wednesday during our lunch break we would sit down and read through the next week’s text.

One morning, they handed me the script. I went to the reading later, and saw Robert Carlock, the other main writer with Tina [Fey]. I say, “Robert, are you out of your league?” mind? What do you do? I can’t play a gay Mexican soap opera star.

[laughs] “Commander in Chief“.

And I do it Patty Duke style – I am I play against myself! I was like, “You guys are crazy.” It’s like, “Alec, it’s a big swing, but we have faith in you. It’s a big swing, but we have faith.” He used to say the same thing all the time. “We trust you.” They want me to go out there and play a lesbian Mexican soap star. silly.

When you were doing the show, did you know how funny it was?

First year, no. I’m not a comedian. I characterize it this way: comedians write their material; They do stand up. If you’re funny, write it down. I am an actor. I don’t write that. So I never thought of myself as funny. I can say a line in a funny way – if someone else was writing that line.

So I was terrified that first year. frightened. Being in a room with these people — who were the funniest people I’ve ever known — felt awkward. “I’m not as good as them,” I thought. By season 2, I started to feel more comfortable.

We talked about the shooting in Rhode Island. Any favorite memories of photographing Boston?

The best time was when we shot the movie.”State and mainWith David Mamet [directing]And Sarah Jessica Parker and all these people shooting in Boston. Matthew Broderick [Parker’s husband] He came and we went to a Red Sox game. We got a fair amount of Boston fans who knew we were from New York. They weren’t necessarily nice to us.

[laughs] classic. I love that Donaghy is from Boston. Some episodes play into that, and there were always great Boston jokes.

It’s as if Conan O’Brien is saying, “Yes, I was in a gang in Boston. We had a uniform: we all wore crocodile jackets.” Donaghy didn’t grow up with any money, but he understood this crowd – the privileged upper class Brahmins. He was hanging out with this crowd and running with this crowd and absorbing everything they had and knew. But he wasn’t one of them.

He was always a man who – sometimes brilliantly and sometimes without much subtlety – always displayed things related to him: his beautiful books and his vases. There was a little bit of him trying to prove to people that he was one of them. And it’s not like that. Of course, the key to this is his relationship with his mother.

TRUE. That must have been great, working with him Elaine Stritch.

It was amazing. I loved her to death. And I I learned Something profound about her: she was going to blow the shot. Take one, take two, take three, take four. She acted like it was accidental, like she was tripping over the lines – but she was lying. She was buying herself a rehearsal. So, by the time she took five, she got better, and by taking seven, she did well.

amazing.

I thought this was exciting. arousing. I’ve learned a lot. It was great artistry in that way, with the comedy and the timing. She was very encouraging and a very dear friend Noel Coward. She said to me, “Alec, you should play Coward someday. Noel’s material is the greatest material. You’ll be beautiful in it. Of course, you’ll have to lose 20 pounds.”

[laughs] That’s what Jack’s mother would tell Jack.

Oh, my God. She was a lovable nightmare.

The interview has been edited and condensed. Lauren Daly is a freelance culture writer. Can be accessed at [email protected]. She chirps @lorendelli1And Instagram on @lorendelli1. Read more stories on Facebook here.